Open Government

JobsOhio

03.10.13

In 2011, Ohio began a plan to privatize the state’s Department of Development, replacing it with a non-profit known as JobsOhio. The plan was a centerpiece of Governor John Kasich’s legislative agenda. It also allowed JobsOhio to meet in near secret, and exempted them from portions of state public records law.

The plan was made even worse in 2012, when additional loopholes were proposed that further shielded JobsOhio from the public eye. After backlash from public records advocates, including many Ohio newspapers and the ACLU, the new legislation was revised. However, this revision did nothing address the fundamental lack of transparency built into the original JobsOhio plan.

In 2013, a new controversy erupted over whether the state auditor has the authority to audit JobsOhio’s financial records. Click here to learn more this controversy and what’s at stake with JobsOhio.